Theatrical counterweight system



Oct. 6

l;556,535 v A. MAzzANovlcl-l y THEATRICAL COUNTERWEIGHT SYSTEM Filed March l5 1923 2 Sheets-Sheet l A. MAZZANOVICH -THEATRICAL GUNTERWEIGI'IT SYSTEI Oct. 6, 1925.

Filed lax-ch 15, 1923 Sheets-Shut 2 Patented Oct. 6, 1925.

- UNITED STATES:

1,556,535 PArENr OFFICE.

p VAivroiv MAzzANovicnnoF'Los ANGELES, cimiroa'ivm.V i

THEATRICAL COUNTERWEIGHT svsrl'aiif. l y' Applicationiled March 15Vy 1923.'v Serial No. 625,194.

To @ZZ 'wl-wm t may concern l Be it known that I, ANTON MAZZANOVICH,v a citizen ofthe United States, residing at. Los Angeles, in the county of Losy AngelesV Vand State of California, have inventednew and useful Improvements in Theatrical: Counterweight Systems, of ywhich the fol.

lowingis a specification.

This invention relates to stage paraphernalia and more particularly to drop, ila-t and ceiling counterweight systems.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved counterweiglit systemy forvfacilitating the erection and knocking ,j

down of theatrical sets. It is an object to provide an apparatus practically operativel Another' object is to provide a counterweight system with a minimum of manual labor.

in which suspended counterweights cank be accurately adjusted to substantially counter-V balance theatrical elements to be erected or handled on a stage.

systems of drop ropes vand cables so that theymay be maintained inan out-of-the-'l Y wayl position to give head room. Another.

- made manifest in the following specificai tion'of an embodiment of the inventionil- :i5

lustratel` in the accompanying Y drawings, wherein f Figure l is a Vvertical section and elevation showing a preferred adaptation vof the 1n-y vention. 40

Fig'. 2 is a perspective of oney ofthe counterweight hoppers. n f.

Fig. 3 is a detail viewy showing a trims' cable clamp attached to a trim cable.V

- Fig. 4 is a Viewl showing a spot line baton. Fig. 5 is a vertical Section and elevation showing a ceiling drop system.

the system as adapted for retracting the i lifting cables.

. 'Fig 7 'is a detail of 'one ofthe' hoppery discharge valves. *r

rllhe vpresent invention -consists Lof a counterbalance rope and' `cable systemk of which 'anynumber of sets of ropes may be employed as in thewusual manner in siiccesf sive lines to "facilitate the -raising and-lower'-y lateral guide pulley Another object is to provide means for conveniently retracting Figure 2.-

Fig. 6 1s a diagrammatic view'showing ingof l.various .theatrical stage fixtures, one

of whichv is shownV in Figure lI asincluding a drop D along the Aupper 4portion of. which extendsia baton B. VIn my invention a number,- ofsuitable clamps 2 are adapted to be attached to thebaton of a drop or latand': frointhese clamps extend respective cables.

Acenter counterweight cable 3 is. attached tothe center clamprof the baton andis led up over a guide pulley 4 and thence to a counterbalance which, in the preferred form, consists of a yhopperf of suitable dimensions. The hopper'isadapted forvertical guided movement and is shown as provided 5 down rto a floatingV with perforated ears 7 at each side to receive tight guides or wires 8 Afastened at'the top and bottom Vand in sui-table spaced relation. Preferably, there is introduced in `the counterweight cable 3 a turn buckle 9 providingA for close adjustment of the apk paratus. f

For nicely trimming the drop D 'the clamps at the ends of the'baton B are attached to contiguous ends of' a cable 10 which has a bight 10a passing over lateral :guide pulleys l1 and' thence down to the counterweight 6, which is provided with` bight `-pulleys-'12. These pulleysare'shown as supported'in a Ycross bar l37provided 'aty the upperrendof 'the hopper 6,'which has aneye 14 to receivev` will be a hook l15 yof the cable v3, as clearly vrshown in f A feature' of the inventionis toprovide for the close counterbalance of the different flats"fand"drops, andsince these may vary` greatly in- -Weight Ikprefer'to use a counterweight' including the hopper 6 and amobile -cha'rge therein in lthe nature of shot "S,v FigureV 7, -ofwhich a suitable quantity can be rintroduced' into'U each of Vthe hoppers', ,ac-

cording tothe weight of the element toI be counter-balanced thereby. f

In order yto facilitate therready transfer andjiemoval'of a portion'of the shot 'charge4 lfromahopper, the bottom of the hopper isA provided iwith a discharge valve 6a which finay beopened aS-necessaryand a portion of thej'shotgfrin out.vv This enables the ready transfery "of the shot from one 'hopper to anotherofas'eries by the'y application of a simple trough-'tothe discharge of one hopfper,VV the opposite fend of, thetrough being disposedfuponthe openupper end or mouth of `j'anotherhopper which is to befurther "weighted Such a form-of? transfer-trough u against descending movement as by a block and. tackle including a rope 17, one block 18 of the: tackle being connected to the fly framework, as shown in Figure 6, while the lower block is adapted tobe connected to a ring 1-9 provided on the cross bar 13 of 'a hopper, as shown in Figure 2, and when thus tackled up the tackle rope 17 can be belayed as by a few wraps around a cleat 20. When a counterweight is so hung up, as shown in Figure 6, the cables 3 and 10 can be retracted to an out-of-the.way, overhead position until required for handling a drop of flat, and to so pull the cables out of the way I provide a lift line or rope 22 which may be connected as to the central baton Y clamp. The lift line or rope 22 extends upwardly over loft pulleys 23 and thence down at the stage side to a cleat 2e over which the Hyman belays the rope 22 after he has Vpulled up the cables 3-10, as is clearly shown in Figure 6.

VVhenit is desired' to set up a flat or drop the tlyman lets out the lift rope. 22 and this permits the cables 3-10 to descend and a1- lows their clamps 2 to be applied as to a baton B of a drop or flat. The lymen then release theblock and tackle rope 17 from the cleat 2O withV the result that the count-erweight 6 becomes operative to count-erbalance the attached stage fiat or drop'and the latter can be raised to a vertical position over the stage, as isl clearly shown in Figure 6.

Vhen a flat or drop D isthus connected to its cables 3 and 10, the side cables 1() compensate by the shifting of the bight around v their pulleys l2 in the head of the counterweight. and the drop becomes nicely trimmed or positioned and theI trimming line or cable 10 may then beY clamped to prvent further shifting as by means of a clamp 25, Figure 3', which canV be closed about-a contiguous portion of the trimming cable 10 while the clamp is attached as to the cross bar 13 of the counterweight. This prevents a sliding or shifting of the trimming cable 10` as to the counterweight and operates to holdthe attached flat or drop D properly positioned.

The flat or drop can be readily raised vertically out of the way above the stage to the dotted line position, Figure l, by means of the lift line 22. During the lifting of a Y drop D the trimming cable 10l is sl'acked and the counterweight received in its bight is lowered down the guide wires 8, Figure l. To again lower the elevated drop D, the flyman hauls down on a counterweight lift rope 26 which serves to pull the counterweight upwardly and lower the drop.

After a scene has been set up it is sometimes desirable to lower a ceiling C into position on the top of the flats and sometimes the ceilings will overhang orV project beyond the tops of the flats. In such cases the flats are clamped in stable condition and then the counterweights are pulled up sufliciently to provide for slacking oil' of cables as 3 and 10 to permit a ceiling C to be lowered down on top of the flats without interference of the cables which otherwise are taut.

ln Figure 5 the ceiling G is indicated as being connected to counterweight cab-le ends- 10 and to the cable 3. It is sometimes desirable to convex the ceiling so as to provide for the introduction or application of a border light7 and this I provide for by suspending the edges of the ceiling from the cable ends 10 and pulling up on the center of the ceiling as by an applied lift-rope 22, Figure 5, which may be adapted to the clamp 2 of the cable 3. By pulling up on the lift rope 22 tension is relieved from the cable 3 and this is slacked off as is indicated. The bowed ceiling is sustained by belaying the lift. rope 22 around its cleat 24 while the edges of the ceiling are either suspended by the cable ends 10 or may rest upon the top of the said flats. A border light L is indicated as being applied under the bowed ceiling C.

It is understood that vario-us elements of stage paraphernalia may be readily handled and counterpoised by the present system, and in Figure 4: there is shown a spot line baton B having eyes 29 to which the spot lines may be attached while the baton B is suspended by the cables 3 and 10` above de scribed. Tt willv be seen that in dismantling a. setting, the counterbalances of the several flats, drops and other elements can be hauled up to lower the elements flat down upon the floor or stage and while-so hauled the counterbalances are adapted to be hung up as is shown in Figure 6- until further use is required. As fast as the elements are disconnected from the cable clamps the cables and the clamps are pulledV up to4 an overhead, clear position. f

One of the importa-nt advantages of my present invention is that a great deal of manual` labor on the part of the` lymen in handling counterweights and counterweight sections is wholly eliminated, since, by my improvement, it is possible to transfer the fluid counterweight medium, such asshot, from one hopper to anotherV without manual effort.. It isV understood that Vany suitable mobile medium, such as sand or water, may be utilized in place of shot.

Further embodiments, modifications and variations may be resorted to within the principle of the invention.

What is claimed is:

l. In a theatrical counterweight system, means forming vertical parallel guides, a hopper mounted to move vertically upon the guides, a cross bar connected to the hopper, pulleys mounted upon the cross bar, a baton, an adjustable counterbalancing cable connected to the center of the baton and running over guide pulleys and downwardly and connected to the cross bar, a second equalizing cable connected at its ends to the ends of the baton and running over guide pulleys and around the pulleys upon the cross bar, and valve means for adjusting the weight of the hopper to counter-balance the load carried by the baton.

2. In a theatrical counterweight system,

` means formingvvertical parallel guides, a

hopper mounted to move vertically upon the guides, a cross bar connected to the hopper, pulleys mounted upon the cross bar, a baton, an adjustable counter-balancing cable connected to the center of the baton and running over guide pulleys and downwardly and connected to the 'cross bar, a second equalizing cable connected at its ends to the ends ofthe baton and running over guide the baton, and a cableconnected to the baton and running over guide pulleys to be manually pulled to raise the baton.v

n a threatrical counterweight system,

means forming vertical parallel guides, a hopper mounted to move vertically upon the guides, a cross bar connected to the hopper, pulleys mounted upon the cross bar, a baton, an adjustable counter-balancing cable connected to the center of the baton and running over guide pulleys and downwardly and connected to the cross bar, a second equalizing cable connected at its ends to the vendsoi' the baton and running over guide pulleys and around the pulleys upon the cross bar, a clamp upon the cross bar to engage and hold the cable in adjusted position, and means for adjusting the weight of the hopper to counter-balance the load carried by the baton.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

ANTON MAZZANOVICH. 

